Adelbert Davis was born in 1857, the son of Sandusky, Ohio businessman Ira T. Davis. At the age of six, he became deaf after one term in public school. He attended and graduated from the Ohio School for the Deaf in Columbus, Ohio. Following graduation, he worked as a printer, clerk, quarryman and other occupations until he discovered his skills as a draftsman and carpenter. He married Lucy Cook, who also attended the Ohio School for the Deaf, graduating in 1878. The couple had two children; both employed at the Boat Works. He opened the Davis Boat Works around 1890, located in Sandusky at the foot of Sycamore St.
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| Davis Boat Works Charles E. Frohman Collection |
In an issue of the "Silent Worker," Mr. Davis stated that experience and brains were built into his boats. He claimed that skilled labor, good materials, and ample shop facilities made the boat works a success. His business grew so much that orders came in from as far away as Texas, California, Maine, and Wisconsin.
Davis agents took orders for the company for dingeys, motor boats, launches, yachts, and pleasure boats; one from St. Petersburg, Russia and another from Alexandria, Egypt. Among his most famous yachts were the "Companion," a 55-foot power cruiser and the "L. E. R. Jr., a 65-foot power boat built entirely of mahogany.
Weldon B. Cooke
Charles Frohman Collection
When California aviator settled in Sandusky to create his aeroplanes, he became interested in developing hydroplanes. It was the Davis Boat Works who converted his hulls. The "flying boats" were constructed in sections so they could be disassembled, shipped by rail, and reassembled. While Cooke's "Irene" flying boat became a local sensation, she never achieved flight.
Courtesy Sandusky History Blog
Davis' Boat Works continued in business until about 1920, providing many of the boats that sailed and raced on Lake Erie. Adelbert Davis died of pneumonia in 1937 at the age of 80 in Columbus, Ohio
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